The man who shot the video above, Michael Thomas, sold the exclusive rights to San Antonio’s KSAT12. The local TV station chose not to show the actual moment police gunned down a man with his arms raised in surrender in Bexar County, San Antonio, Texas. Apparently he wasn’t reaching for a weapon at the time of ballistic perforation. “Law enforcement officials say the deputies made multiple attempts to subdue the man using tasers and riot shields but were unsuccessful,” thinkprogress.org reports. “The officials said deputies arrived on the scene to find . . .
a woman bleeding from her head and “holding a baby who appeared to possibly have been injured.” . . .
“Certainly what’s in the video is a cause for concern, but it’s important to let the investigation go through its course so that we can assure a thorough and complete review of all that occurred,” Bexar County Sheriff Susan Pamerleau said. Pamerleau did not release the name of the man killed, but said the two deputies have been placed on routine administrative leave while the shooting is investigated.
Bexar County deputies fatally shot 11 people between 2003 and 2013, according to a 2014 investigation by another San Antonio news station. A county deputy was indicted for murder in one of those shootings, in which an off-duty deputy fired eight shots and killed an unarmed man following a minor car accident.
On the positive side, back in February 2013, the same KSAT that refuses to release an unedited version of the video reported that no less than 17 Bexar County officers were officially recognized for going “above and beyond the call of duty” during “many different tasks.” Fair and balanced, dontcha know.
[h/t DrVino]